About Cliff

Cliff as a Person

Cliff was born and raised in Long Beach, California. Throughout his youth, his interests were drawn towards both the physical and biological sciences, as well as to music. These interests later brought him to dabble in a wide variety of sciences in college before later deciding to pursue his degree in Jazz Guitar. Cliff can be heard performing guitar around the Portland area, when he’s not busy in the field. Cliff’s interest in the sciences drove him to a teaching career where he could share his love and appreciation of the natural world with young people, and particpate in the occasional sing along.

While Cliff was navigating his life, his growing interest in the bigfoot phenomena drove him to travel to other parts of the country to look into the mystery. By extensively travelling the West Coast, he found himself unsatisfied with living in Southern California and wanting to live closer to bigfoot habitat. After living in various parts of California and Washington State, he eventually settled in Portland, OR where he lives today.

Cliff as a Bigfooter

Cliff measuring the step length of a trackway

Cliff has been a dedicated sasquatch field researcher for more than two decades. It was his dedication to the subject and his online presence that drew the attention of Discovery Communications, who later invited him to be a cast member on Animal Planet’s Finding Bigfoot television series. Both on and off camera, he has managed to gather data supporting the hypothesis that sasquatches are an undiscovered species of great ape that walks bipedally and lives in North America. Though finding and documenting data is a goal of Cliff’s research, it is not the primary goal. As it turns out, the journey is just as rewarding as any destination!

Cliff in the Media

Bob Saget and Cliff Barackman

Cliff has appeared in various media outlets over the years in regards to his bigfoot experience. He has written extensively on the subject with his work being featured not only on his own blog, but on other websites as well. He has also been featured in student reports, newspaper articles, video documentaries, and more.

In 2007, Cliff was contacted to be on the History Channel’s “Monsterquest.” The episode, entitled “Legend of the Hairy Beast,” featured Cliff and fellow bigfoot researcher, James “Bobo” Fay investigating bigfoot sighting reports on the Klamath River in Northern California. Being the first whites to ever be invited to do bigfoot research on the Yurok Indian Reservation, Cliff and Bobo interviewed Native American elders about their experiences with sasquatches. They hired Indian river guides, and made base camp in a cabin with no access other than by river. They also utilized advanced night vision technology to try to film sasquatches at night from a river jet boat.

Being well-respected in the bigfoot community and beyond, Cliff is often called upon for comments about bigfoot evidence and research. He was the featured expert in news items broadcast to the Portland, OR and Seattle, WA media markets in regards to the infamous Georgia Bigfoot Hoax of 2008 where he clearly stated that it was a falsification. He has appeared on many internet radio shows, and was also a featured guest on “Coast to Coast with George Noory.”

In Spring, 2010, Cliff was asked to accompany Bob Saget on a bigfoot expedition in Northern Washington State. Bob was filming an episode of his A&E series, Strange Days with Bob Saget, where he would partake in an eccentric subculture’s way of life for a weekend. Bob and Cliff were filmed discussing the various types of recorded sasquatch vocalizations on record, and Bob walked away very impressed with the evidence. As a parting gift, Cliff gave Bob a copy of the 1982 Grays Harbor, WA footprint cast.

Cliff is currently being featured in Animal Planet’s new series, Finding Bigfoot. Once again teaming up with colleagues James “Bobo” Fay, Matt Moneymaker, and Ranae Holland, Cliff is traveling the country investigating bigfoot evidence. His expert opinion, level-headed approach, and analytical mind is essential to the team. When numbers need to be extracted for the sake of data analysis, or when a footprint needs to be permanently recorded, he is there to offer his unique skills. Cliff augments the credibility of Finding Bigfoot with his passion for data collection, and his ability to explain complex ideas in simple fashions.

Cliff as a Musician

Cliff holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from California State University, Long Beach. Cliff was a jazz guitar student of Bay Area guitarist, Dave Schroeder, and later went on to take lessons from jazz great, Ron Eschete, and specialized in the seven-stringed jazz guitar. Having graduated both the university and from Mr. Eschete, Cliff now does casual gigs in and around Portland, OR where he lives. He commonly plays in small groups, but most notably the jazz guitar duet, Mo’ Strings Attached with Andrew Wright, a skilled luthier living in Beaverton, OR. Cliff occasionally updates his musical website, though the demands of bigfooting often prohibit him from giving his musical projects their deserved attention.